We are aware that the substitute home placement programs (Keepers, guardianshipo or adoption) will not, unfortunately, benefit many of the children living in abandoned/child institutions. For that reason, they remain at the institution until they are legally of age (majority), when they will be, inevitable, dismissed. The present study focuses, therefore, on the experience of abandoned and institutionalized adolescents in face of being disconnected from the institution due to becoming legally adults. This will be a qualitative research, based on the phenomenology approach, analyzing depositions of teen-agers who are experiencing the disconnection process. Considering their perspective, we establish a discussion/reflection on the meaning/representation the adolescents have of the institutional disconnection and on the role played by the educators in the complex of institutional practices. We point to possible alternatives which will enable more satisfactory disconnection processes for the adolescents as well as for the professionals that work with them
